BEN'S STRANGE STORY
Jack jumped upon the chest, which he quickly dragged to the little window,
and answered the signal, one generally used by the Hilltop boys when they
wished to communicate with each other at a distance.
In a moment it was answered, and then young Smith ran up under the window,
and said eagerly:
"You are all right, boys, you are there still, and safe!"
"Yes," answered Jack. "Who is there?"
"Some of the boys, Ben Bowline, the captain and Buck, all ready for a
fight if necessary."
"All right. I don't think you will need to make one."
Percival was at the door now, and in a moment he heard the outer one fall
in with a crash, and then came the rush of many feet.
There were shouts outside, but these were drowned by the yells of the
boys, and of the old sailor.
"Are yo' dere, sah?" the boys heard Bucephalus say in a few moments, just
outside the door.
"Yes, but we are locked in."
"Nevah min' dat, jus' lemme get mah head at it an' Ah'll break it down in
a hurry, sah."
"Here, stop that!" roared Ben Bowline. "You'll crack yer skull!"
"No, sah, Ah's used to dem things!" guffawed Bucephalus.
"Don't you know that his name means 'ox-headed,' Ben?" cried Percival with
a laugh. "Why, he could split a two-inch plank with that head of his. Let
him do it, but first wait till I get out of the way."
It was not necessary for Bucephalus to butt the door down, however, as one
of the men with Rollins had been captured, and was forced to open the door
with his key.
It was the same man who had brought them food and wine, and at the sight
of the boys, for lights had been brought, he exclaimed:
"Guess you boys didn't drink anything?"
"No, we did not," said Percival. "Won't you have it your self?"
"Huh! I think not. But where's the little fellow? The one that was asleep
when I come in."
"Here I am!" piped up Jesse W. himself, "and you'll find that I am pretty
wide awake."
The boys picked up their coats, and put them on, and the man muttered, his
eyes opening wider every moment:
"Huh! that was a neat trick! Then the boy was not there at all?"
"No, he was on his way for help," said Jack. "Never judge too much by
appearances. Still, I am glad you did this time."
The boys and their friends now left the house, the man being taken a short
distance to prevent his giving the alarm, although the natives had already
scattered in many directions at the coming of Ben, Buck and the boys.
"Young Smith got to us all right," said Harry to Jack and Dick, "and we
set out without delay. You must have had quite an adventure."
"So we did, and it might have been worse. Rollins is on this part of the
island, sir," to the captain. "He got in yesterday or to-day, I am not
sure which. I do not believe he has seen the man who was signaling to him
last night, and I do not think he knows anything about him. He does know
that government vessels are on the watch for him, however, and I think he
will shortly get away from here."
"I wish we could get word to them so as to stop him," growled the captain.
"These smugglers give honest traders a bad reputation, for folks think we
are all alike."
A considerable number of the Hilltop boys had come to the rescue of the
two boys, and these were now carried on the shoulders of the others, and a
triumphal march back to the vessel was begun, young Smith being taken up
as well as Jack and Dick, the boys saying that he had traveled enough for
one day and that he needed a rest.
Many of the boys had pocket lights with them, and others cut pine branches
and made torches of them so that there was light enough to show them the
way, and it was not necessary to wait for the moon to rise.
The boys sang and shouted, and made a lot of noise on the way back so that
if the smugglers or any of the natives had had any idea of attacking them
they would have been deterred by the very din.
They reached the shore at length, and were taken on board the yacht,
Bucephalus presently announcing that supper was ready, the boys having the
best of appetites for it, and making it a feast in honor of Jack, Dick and
young Jesse W., who was considered as much a hero as his older
schoolmates, and was certainly regarded so by them.
Not all the boys had gone over to the other side, some staying away on
account of the fatigue of the journey and others, noticeably Herring and
his cronies, because they were either not asked or would not have gone if
they had been.
It was a feast in honor of the three boys, nevertheless, and those who
were not ready to join in praise of the heroes were wise enough to keep
quiet and not to make any dissent.
After supper Jack and a few of the boys discussed the situation, and tried
to calculate how long it would take the vessel which Mr. Smith had sent
out to reach them.
"If we knew that, we would know how long we would have to wait," observed
Arthur. "Some vessels are faster than others."
"It would take at least three or four days," said Jack, "and if he has
sent a fast vessel and given directions to make all speed they might be
here in less time. Then they must pick up a pilot who would be likely to
know these seas, and who is used to making difficult passages. Any
ordinary pilot would not do. He should have a special one."
"And he cannot tell just what is required till he gets here, and, perhaps,
would have to hunt one up, and there is more lost time," said Harry
dolefully. "It's a pity we are wasting so much time."
"Yes, but I don't see how we are going to help ourselves."
"No, perhaps not."
Late that night Jack was awakened as he lay asleep in his berth, not by a
flash, as before, but by hearing some one say, as he went by the door:
"It can't be, it's too much like the flying Dutchman."
"That's what I say, but all the same I was sure I saw one come in through
the reefs."
"You didn't see any lights?"
"No, but I could make out her masts and rigging."
The two men went on, and Jack heard no more.
"There has some vessel come in through the reefs," he said to himself as
he sat up in bed. "I must try to find them to-morrow. I have always said
that I thought it possible for a vessel to get through if one knew the
passage, and this shows that it has been done. No wonder these men thought
it was a phantom ship."
Partially dressing himself he went on deck, and looked around him.
He could see nothing, and he hardly expected to do so, but had yielded to
impulse and had come on deck.
Ben Bowline presently came up, looked at him, touched his grizzled
forelock, and said:
"Sir to you. Come up to get the air?"
"Yes," Jack answered shortly.
"Kind of a pretty night, don't you think, sir!" the old sailor said after
a pause during which he stood balancing himself first on one foot and then
on the other.
"Yes, it is a fine starlight night. The moon ought to be coming up soon,
and then we can see things better."
"Yes, so we can. Was you looking for anything particular, sir?" in a
mysterious tone.
"How about that vessel, Ben?" asked Jack in a low tone. "Are you sure you
saw her? What was she, the long, low, rakish craft we read of in old
stories or a saucy steam yacht with tremendous speed?"
"Sh! the old man might hear us," cautioned Ben Bowline. "Do you know I
don't want to think it were the Flying Dutchman 'cause it's plumb bad luck
to see her, but how is a live ship going to get in here?"
"Easy enough, if she knows the way, Ben. Don't say anything about it, but
are you sure you saw something?"
"Well, I dunno, but I think I did. She was out yonder, just where you can
see the open water, and she was only there half a jiffy, as you might say.
Tom saw her, too, or I would have thought I was dreaming."
"Steamer, Ben?" asked Jack, sure now that there was something in the old
fellow's story.
"Reckon she was, though I did see something white, which gave me a creepy
feeling like as if I'd seen a apparition or something similar. Maybe she
had sail on to help her steam. Some of 'em do."
"And you saw her for a short time only!"
"Yes, sir, not half a minute nor half that even. There wasn't time to say
'Jack Robinson' twice, sir, before she was out of sight."
"Well, if she came in she can get out, and so can we, Ben. Keep this quiet
till I speak to the captain about it. It will be just as well not to have
every one know it, and have it talked about all over the vessel."
"Shouldn't wonder if it would, sir," and as Jack walked away the old
sailor continued his own passage up and down the deck.
"There are probably places to hide that we have not seen," thought the
boy, as he took a turn of the deck, and then started to go below, "and we
may not be able to see this vessel in the morning. I shall have a look for
her, nevertheless. If there is to be a bargain made and I don't see why
there should not be, unless we trade directly with lawbreakers and assist
them. That we could not do, of course, but if we hire a pilot we are not
supposed to know whether he is honest or not."
The question was a puzzling one, and Jack had not solved it when he went
below, turned in and quickly fell asleep.
In the morning, nothing having been seen of any strange vessel from the
deck of the yacht, Jack told Percival quietly what he had heard, and after
breakfast they went ashore and set out for a search for the stranger.
"If she is here," Jack said, "she is one of the smugglers, and will not
want to be seen. If we can find her it may mean that we can get out of our
strange prison."
"How are we going to find her, Jack? There are probably plenty of hiding
places about here that we don't dream of."
"I know it, Dick, but we must find them if we want to leave here. I do not
think that Smith will be able to get us out, and if we can do it
ourselves, so much the better."
"Yes, and all the more credit to us, Jack."